A country is considered landlocked when it is surrounded on all sides by one or more other countries and therefore has no immediate coastline providing access to the oceans.
How Many Countries are Landlocked?
There are currently 49 countries (including five partially recognized states) that are completely surrounded by at least one other country.
With the exception of two countries in South America (Bolivia and Paraguay) the rest of these countries are found in Africa, Europe, and Asia.
Landlocked by a Single Country
There are three countries that are completely landlocked (i.e. surrounded on all sides) by only country. Two of these countries are founded within the country of Italy.
These single-country landlocked countries are: Lesotho which is surrounded by South Africa, San Marino, a state surrounded by Italy, and Vatican City which is a city-state surrounded by Rome, the capitol city of Italy.
Free weekly newsletter
Fill out your e-mail address to receive our newsletter!
By entering your email address you agree to receive our newsletter and agree with our privacy policy.
You may unsubscribe at any time.
Countries that are landlocked by a single country are known as enclave countries.
Landlocked Countries That Share the Most Borders With Other Countries
Two landlocked countries share borders with eight countries.
Austria shares a border with: Czechia (Czech Republic) to the north, Germany to the northwest, Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west, Italy to the southwest, Slovenia and Hungary to the southeast, and Slovenia to the east.
The second landlocked country that shares the most borders with other countries is Serbia.
The eight countries that share a border with Serbia are: Hungary to the north, Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina to the east, Montenegro and Kosovo to the southwest, Macedonia to the west, and Romania and Bulgaria to the east.
Double-Landlocked Countries
Landlocked countries that are separated from the nearest ocean coastline but not one, but two countries, are known as double-landlocked or doubly-landlocked countries.
The first country that is double-landlocked is the microstate of Liechtenstein located in central Europe which is immediately surrounded by the landlocked countries of Austria and Switzerland.
The second country is located in central Asia, Uzbekistan which is surrounded by the landlocked countries of Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan.
There are two defacto states with limited or no international recognition: South Ossetia and Transnistria.
Largest and Smallest Landlocked Countries
The largest landlocked country is Kazakhstan in Central Asia with a land area of over 2.7 million kilometers.
The smallest landlocked country is the city-state of Vatican City with an area of just 44 hectares (109 acres).
Map of Landlocked Countries, 2011
List of Landlocked Countries
| Country or Territory | Area(km2) | Surrounding countries | Number of Surrounding Countries |
|---|---|---|---|
| Afghanistan | 652,230 | Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, China, Pakistan | 6 |
| Andorra | 468 | France, Spain | 2 |
| Armenia | 29,743 | Iran, Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan | 4 |
| Austria | 83,871 | Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Italy, Liechtenstein, Switzerland | 8 |
| Azerbaijan | 86,600 | Russia, Georgia, Armenia, Iran, Turkey | 4 |
| Belarus | 207,600 | Poland, Lithuania, Russia, Ukraine, Latvia | 5 |
| Bhutan | 38,394 | India, China | 2 |
| Bolivia | 1,098,581 | Peru, Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Paraguay | 5 |
| Botswana | 582,000 | Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa | 4 |
| Burkina Faso | 274,222 | Mali, Niger, Benin, Togo, Ghana, Ivory Coast | 6 |
| Burundi | 27,834 | Rwanda, Tanzania, Democratic Republic of the Congo | 3 |
| Central African Republic | 622,984 | Chad, Cameroon, Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, South Sudan | 6 |
| Chad | 1,284,000 | Libya, Niger, Sudan, Central African Republic, Nigeria, Cameroon | 6 |
| Czech Republic | 78,867 | Austria, Germany, Poland, Slovakia | 4 |
| Ethiopia | 1,104,300 | Djibouti, Eritrea, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan | 6 |
| Hungary | 93,028 | Austria, Croatia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Ukraine | 7 |
| Kazakhstan | 2,724,900 | China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan | 5 |
| Kosovo | 10,908 | Albania, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia | 4 |
| Kyrgyzstan | 199,951 | China, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan | 4 |
| Laos | 236,800 | Myanmar, China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand | 5 |
| Lesotho | 30,355 | South Africa | 1 |
| Liechtenstein | 160 | Switzerland, Austria | 2 |
| Luxembourg | 2,586 | Belgium, Germany, France | 3 |
| Macedonia (F.Y.R.O.M.) | 25,713 | Kosovo, Serbia, Bulgaria, Greece, Albania | 5 |
| Malawi | 118,484 | Zambia, Tanzania, Mozambique | 3 |
| Mali | 1,240,192 | Algeria, Niger, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Guinea, Senegal, Mauritania | 7 |
| Moldova | 33,846 | Romania, Ukraine | 2 |
| Mongolia | 1,566,500 | China, Russia | 2 |
| Artsakh | 11,458 | Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iran | 3 |
| Nepal | 147,181 | China, India | 2 |
| Niger | 1,267,000 | Libya, Chad, Nigeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali, Algeria | 7 |
| Paraguay | 406,752 | Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia | 3 |
| Rwanda | 26,338 | Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo | 4 |
| San Marino | 61 | Italy | 1 |
| Serbia | 88,361 | Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania(viaKosovo and Metohija[c]) | 8 |
| Slovakia | 49,035 | Austria, Czech Republic, Poland, Ukraine, Hungary | 5 |
| South Ossetia | 3,900 | Georgia, Russia | 2 |
| South Sudan | 619,745 | Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Central African Republic | 6 |
| Swaziland | 17,364 | Mozambique, South Africa | 2 |
| Switzerland | 41,284 | France, Germany, Liechtenstein, Austria, Italy | 5 |
| Tajikistan | 143,100 | Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, China | 4 |
| Transnistria | 4,163 | Moldova, Ukraine | 2 |
| Turkmenistan | 488,100 | Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Iran | 4 |
| Uganda | 241,038 | Kenya, South Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Tanzania | 5 |
| Uzbekistan | 449,100 | Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan | 5 |
| Vatican City | 0.44 | Italy | 1 |
| West Bank | 5,655 | Israel, Jordan | 2 |
| Zambia | 752,612 | Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia, Angola | 8 |
| Zimbabwe | 390,757 | South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, Mozambique | 4 |
| Total | 14,776,228 |
[a] Has a coastline on the saltwater Caspian Sea | [b] Has a coastline on the saltwater Dead Sea | [c] Disputed region with limited international recognition | [d] Landlocked by just one country | [e] Not fully recognized
